A crowd-funded automotive startup that once closed shop has developed a solar-electric vehicle it says needs no charging for typical daily driving.
The Aptera – named after the company that created it – will be unveiled at the CES consumer electronics show in Las Vegas in January, the Carlsbad, Calif., automaker said.
The three-wheeled two seater, which looks like a cross between a Batmobile and a spaceship, is billed as the “world’s most technologically advanced” solar-electric vehicle that will allow consumers to get most of their fuel from the sun. The company plans to sell a series of the vehicles to consumers and businesses.
The “Launch Edition” of the Aptera can operate for up to 400 miles per charge and as many as 40 miles per day on solar power alone from integrated solar panels, the company says.
The startup’s predecessor was founded in 2005 but liquidated in 2011 as its founders pursued other business ventures. They relaunched it in 2019 with the goal of making lightweight, aerodynamic EVs that run on solar energy for most daily driving, in contrast with the typically heavy pure EVs on today’s roads that require all grid energy.
Aptera says it’s gotten almost 50,000 customer reservations from around the world for its vehicles and is in its final development stage. It will offer driving demonstrations to some media representatives attending CES.
